Tuesday, April 19, 2011

18 April Challenge: Project "Purge" {Bedroom Purge Part 1}

This month we are really getting our purge on!  So many of you have written to tell me how WONDERFUL and freeing it feels!  That makes my heart all ooey gooey with happiness!  Keep up the awesomeness everyone!  Living with less reaps both short and long term benefits!!

So far we tacked our Entry, Living Room and Kitchen!


Today marks the beginning of week 3: BEDROOMS!



We recently did a lot of purging when we temporarily relocated our Master Bedroom to our Guest Room.  We went from a nice sized walk-in closet down to sharing the top and bottom of a single closet!  You can read all about that craziness here.  Here is a glimpse at how a hubs and wife can share an itty bitty closet space:


Living with less clothing clutter has been a blessing in disguise!  And even as we begin our basement rebuilding process, I am excited for all the free closet space I will have!  I have so many bins of clothes to be sold at this springs thrift sale, and it couldn't feel better!

However, just because our bedroom is pretty simplified and purged, I will still be doing another sweep, because it's always great to analyze our belongings.  The fun thing about this week, is that unlike a living room or kitchen, most homes have multiple bedroom spaces!  That means, more purging!  That's right kids, go hide your belongings, cause mom's coming in and everything is at risk!  

Let's back up though.  Why is it important to purge and simplify in the bedroom?
  • Stats show we sleep better when there is less clutter in our bedrooms/lives.
  • Living with less clothing means it has to be washed more frequently and can't be left to pile up {and I know it can - how many of you out there get down to picking at clothes you don't love but wear because it's the only thing left in your closet?}.
  • Less clothing simplifies our choices when planning our attire.
  • Organized drawers in the kid's spaces allows them to contribute in putting away and picking out their attire!  {See how we organize our kid's dressers and get them to help here}

  • Kid's appreciate their belongings and are more apt to play with their toys when they are grouped by like items and easy to find.  It's sad when that $40 figurine only get's played with a couple times, because it's tucked in a pile, left in the car or has nothing in common with the other toys.
  • Teaching kiddos to live with less and respect an organized space at a young age is a great foundation to grow upon!

Today, I am challenging you to pop into your bedroom spaces and start plucking away at the purging process.

Some things to consider as you start your purge:
  •  Clothing:
    • When did you last wear it?
    • How do you feel when you wear it?
    • Do you have something similar/duplicates?
    • Does it fit?  Truly.
    • Is it a versatile piece?  A staple?  Some great resources on stretching your attire and mixing and matching essentials:
    • Empty all drawers and say goodbye to socks and undergarments with holes or that have become orphaned or stretched/ill-fitting.
    • For the kiddos, keep it simple and paired down so it's easy for them to pick out their clothes for the day.  And so it's also to help put things away {if everything is crammed in a drawer, they will pull it all out to find what they want.  Or just stuff it all back in when putting things away}
  • Linens:
    • Only two sets of sheet per bed are needed.  One to keep on the bed, one to switch out to while laundering the other set.  It's also recommended to invest in white sheets which you can easily sanitize and are versatile to work on any bed in the home for years to come.
  • Toys:  
    • Does the set/game/puzzle have all of the pieces?
    • What condition is the toy in?
    • How often does the toy get played with?
    • Are their duplicates?  
    • Let your kid's help you decide what stays and goes.  Teach them the benefits to purging and donating.  
    • Expanding your dwelling to accommodate growing stashes of toys costs oodles more than cutting the clutter! 
Best time to purge toys is right after a birthday party or holiday.  Before the new toys and belongings come in, some previous items must go to make room.

A tip that I have learned with toys that I wish I would have learned two kid's ago, is that for holidays when creating the kid's wish lists, think about expanding on the basics instead of having endless amounts of miscellaneous single toys.  For example, our kiddos heart train tracks {wooden and geo trax}, legos, transformers, lincoln logs and Little People sets.  Since those were their favs... the best trick was to continue to expand those specific sets and keep them stored together.  Storing toys in sets is much easier this way, and the toys tend to be played with more.

Also, if you children are becoming "bored" with their toys, talk to other families with children in similar age groups, they may be willing to do a toy swap, which will save both families money!

Ready? Set?  Go!!  Have fun!  I can't wait to see/hear how you do!

What am I forgetting?  I would love for you to leave a comment and share additional benefits to having a clutter bedroom space, or other suggestions on where clutter can be cut!  What did I miss?  Did anyone get started on this, this weekend and if so, what did you say goodbye too?  Any other good fashion websites to share?



I decided a little challenge would be fun! This month we are spending the next thirty days saying goodbye to thirty things!  Wanna Join in?  Take photos and blog about your awesomeness as you go!  I am hoping to do a giant, "We did it!" celebratory post where we can all link up our purging success stories at the end of the month!

18 comments:

  1. Oooh yes I'll definitely be doing some bedroom purging I think!!

    My clothes has been on my to-do list since the start of the year and my 6 week holiday from uni/placement starting on Friday shall leave me no excuses!

    And since I am moving my scrapbooking into another room soon (fingers crossed my brother moves out!) that shall leave me with LOADS of room ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey, have just started following you and WOW admire you so much, how you have the time to do all that with two small kiddies (I have 2 also but their ages are very different 17 & 7).
    Inspirational stuff. I really must get around to using your tips, I am so overwhelmed I have no idea where to start. We had a skip in the other day (not sure what you call them in the states, http://www.shaftesburyhire.co.uk/skip.gif, one of these) and we filled it with junk and still our house is a mess!!!

    No idea what or where to start. Don't suppose you would mind moving to the UK would you? :)


    Also I have put your button on my Blog, hope you don't mind, I had to put it at the bottom though as it is just too big for a side bar for me.

    xxxxxx

    ReplyDelete
  3. I will definitely start purging my clothes. I have jeans up on a shelf in my closet that just don't fit anymore and I haven't worn them in ages. Maybe with some clothes gone, I can fit more in my closet.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I did a little post about you and the printables you made.
    http://therapeuticcrafting.blogspot.com/2011/04/getting-organized.html

    ReplyDelete
  5. I just started purging my home this weekend, and today I began on my closet in my master Bedroom. Its scary in there!
    http://adayinthelifeofafreg.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  6. Fabulous idea! I can't wait to get started!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I would love to know where and how you store your out of season clothes!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I love these posts! I just tackled my kitchen last week after I saw your post! I really need to tackle the linens closet I have so many sheets I haven't used EVER in the past 2 years I always tell myself I can use it but never do.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I have not started on the bedroom yet, but I have a long weekend coming my way this weekend. 4 days off, so I will be able to get a lot done. ;)

    We have a similar closet space like you and your hubby do and we have made it work out for us. But I know I can get rid of a bunch of clothes in our closet though. Get ready clothes, because you are getting donated soon. I haven't worn them in a while and they need to go. Of course to make room for some new ones that I need. I actually have lots of clothes that don't fit me right now....heck haven't fit in awhile, so they will be donated. Thanks for the kick in the butt Jen!!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. I think I need round 2 of my clothing purge b/c everytime I walk in my closet theres a million things I just don't want to wear!

    love your idea of the toy swap! totally passing that along to friends with kids! =)

    xoXOxo
    Jenn @ Peas & Crayons

    ReplyDelete
  11. I saw board games stored in an awesome way! Art work! The boards were framed and then hung on the wall like a picture. The pieces were put in a plastic baggie and secured to the back of the frame. I thought it looked really cool. Something I may look into when I have a bigger house with a game room. :)

    <3 your blog!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. My hubby and I purged FOUR contractor trash bags of stuff from our closet. We're still going with our dressers but it will all get done soon! I love only having stuff that I actually wear in my closet!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh my goodness, Jen! Thank you SO much for the link! I checked my site stats today and thought "what in the world?" Little did I know a blog superstar gave me a shout out! Thanks so much, you made my week :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. To sets of white sheets for each bed is a lifesaver - no more linens and fitted sheet messes in the cupboard taking up space and you always have crisp fresh linen that goes with everything!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I just started doing my bedroom on Monday on a whim. I had no idea that you were doing this series! I'm super excited about this! While I was cleaning my room, I realized that I have a LOT to do and I was only scratching the surface. Same with my kids rooms. Eek! Wish me LOADS of energy and that I can finally get it to a managable state.

    ReplyDelete
  16. My friend gave me a great suggestion the other day since I was having a hard time deciding what clothes to get rid of. She said to take all my clothes and put them on hangers, then hang them up with the hook facing outward. After an article of clothing has been worn and washed, hang it back up with the hook facing the closet (how I would normally hang it up). At the end of the year, if the hook is still facing the wrong way, then I will know I haven't worn that piece all year, and it's probably time to get rid of it! This is something I plan on doing every Christmas break. This way, I don't have to keep up with the last time I wore something, and it will make room for my new clothes I obtained during the holidays!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Bored.... Not board.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for taking a moment to join in on the conversation! I read and appreciate each and every comment, however, I will remove any comment that I believe to be inappropriate, malicious, or spam-like. I would love for this comment section to be used as a place to engage in purposeful dialogue, I only ask that everyone remains constructive and considerate.

All comments will be moderated and may take a moment to appear.